Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the technology of generating a still image from a moving image that has been captured.
Description of the Related Art
In recent years, there has been a rapid increase in the number of pixels in image capturing apparatuses that are capable of capturing a moving image. Image capturing apparatuses that are capable of capturing a Full HD moving image have already become common, and image capturing apparatuses that are capable of capturing a 4K or 2K moving image are also emerging on the market now.
Due to the development of such a high-definition moving image, each frame image of a moving image in recent years has a sufficient number of pixels for use as a still image. Accordingly, it is expected that a method for generating a still image from the frames of a moving image will be more common in the future.
One problem in generating a still image from a moving image is that it is difficult for a user to determine which frame image is the most suitable as a still image. For example, camera shake or an out-of-focus image, which are not noticed because of the continuous transition between frames when the image is viewed as a part of a moving image, are often beyond the acceptable level when the image is viewed as a still image. To check the frames one by one is very troublesome for the user.
To address such a problem, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2010-252078 discloses the following method: First, camera image status information, which has been recorded during recording of a moving image, is read during playback of the moving image. Then, an image that is the most suitable as a still image is selected from among frames captured around the time when the switch for recording a still image is pressed down.
However, although the conventional example above discloses a concept of recording the status information on AF, AE, AWB, shake, etc. in synchronization with the recording of a moving image so that the status information can be used for selecting a still image during playback of the moving image, this example does not contain any specific disclosure about how to generate the status information.